(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention refers to a hearing aid device to be worn in the ear or in or at an auditory canal. A process is provided for the production of a protection element for the device, an installation tool for the assembly and the removing of the protection element from the hearing device respectively as well as a process for the installation of a protection element.
(2) Description of Related Art
In particular, in in-the-ear hearing aids or hearing devices respectively, the problem exists that at the acoustic exit of the hearing device towards the inner ear, contamination, in particular caused by cerumen, can occur.
In the state of the art a number of measures are known to prevent or at least to reduce essentially the contamination by cerumen of an-the-ear hearing device. Usually the use of a membrane as earpiece protection at in-the-ear hearing devices is proposed. Such membranes are described within a plurality of former publications.
In the U.S. Pat. No. 4,987,597 the use of a microporous membrane is described which can be attached replaceably on sound exit openings e.g. of hearing devices.
In the U.S. Pat. No. 6,164,409 a rigid, non-sound permeable membrane is described which hermetically is sealing the sound exit opening of an in-the-ear hearing device. The membrane is shifted in oscillation by the earpiece and creates sound waves which are similar in frequency and amplitude.
In the DE 19 640 796 A1 a hearing device is described, at which the earpiece is separated from the eardrum by a membrane. Proposed is a thin titanium membrane which can be attached onto the sound exit socket of the hearing device by means of a cap. A similar system is proposed within the EP 0 835 042 A2. A thin titanium membrane is shaped by a respective surface stamping and a concave or convex forming respectively as acoustic filter or acoustic lens.
Also in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,953,215 a membrane is mentioned made out of a non-porous material, which at least contains a small bore as sound exit opening, this opening must be at least bigger than the membrane thickness by a factor 10, to obtain the acoustical transparency.
Also at behind-the-ear devices (HdO) the use of membranes has already been described. For instance within the WO-A-0045617 a treatment equipment is described which contains a sound exit opening which is sealed by an acoustically permeable, waterproof film.
The DE 101 04 129 A1 describes a hearing device with a filter unit which contains a membrane or sieve-like filter element. To enlarge the active cross-section area for the sound transfer the filter element is arranged in an inclined position. A similar arrangement is also described within the DE 102 14 189 B4. Here a relatively great membrane parallel to the ear canal axis is arranged and exposed to sound of an ear piece. The emitted sound is radiated over a small gap at the front area of the hearing device bowl to the eardrum.
Also the EP 0 629 101 A1 describes a membrane which does not only enclose the sound entrance and the sound exit opening, but also the outer skin of the hearing aid bowl and can be adapted by plugging of the internal space to the anatomy of the auditory canal. This membrane is not replaceable but integral part of the bowl.
The EP 0 548 580 A1 describes an earpiece for hearing devices which is protected by means of an outer membrane against cerumen and humidity. Again here the membrane is note replaceable but integral part of the earpiece.